Sigh Of Relief! Govt Reduces Cost Of LPG Cylinders By Rs 200

Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in 2024, the Central Government on Tuesday announced a redemption of Rs 200 on the LPG cylinder.

In addition to this, the centre has also approved an additional subsidy of Rs 200 for the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) beneficiaries. This means customers under the Ujjwala Scheme would get a total redemption of Rs 400 per cylinder.

While addressing a press conference, Union Minister Anurag Thakur said, "PM Modi has decided ₹200 reduction in the price of domestic LPG cylinders, for all users...this is a gift from PM Narendra Modi, to the women of the country, during the occasion of Raksha Bandhan and Onam."

He further said that only 14.5 crore citizens had domestic LPG connections in 2014, however, now 33 crore citizens have the connections out of which 9.6 crore citizens have been distributed under the Ujjwala scheme.

In the current scenario, the cost of an LPG cylinder in Delhi is Rs 1053, while in Mumbai, it is Rs 1052.50, Rs 1068.50 in Chennai, and Rs 1079 in Kolkata. Notably, the price of domestic LPG cylinders was increased by Rs 50 in July, and twice in May by the oil marketing companies. However, the cut in LPG prices seems to be a sigh of relief for the households in reducing the household expenditures.

This seems to be the Centre's strategy to secure voters ahead of Assembly polls in five states - Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, and Mizoram later this year.

according to a recent National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) report, 49.4 percent of households in rural areas and 89 percent of urban households across India have been using LPG as the primary source of energy.

The cut in LPG prices is applicable to those who have access to the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY), which was launched in 2016. In the recently concluded monsoon session of Parliament, the government said there were 9.59 crore beneficiaries of PM Ujjwala Yojana as of July 1, 2023.